14

E. W. STAFFORD.

Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, 26th January, 1859.

THE following Ordinances passed by the Superintendent and Provincial Council of the Province of Auckland, intituled—

"The Auckland Building Act, 1858,"
"The Sheep Act, 1858,"
"The Road Act, No. 1, 1858,"
"The Road Act, No. 2, 1858,"
"The Licensing Act, 1858,"
"The Local Improvement Act, 1858,"
"The Appropriation Act, 1859,"

having been laid before the Governor, in conformity with the provisions of the Constitution Act, His Excellency has been pleased to assent to the same.

E. W. STAFFORD.

Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, 12th January, 1859.

HIS Excellency the Governor directs the publication of the following Geological Report by Dr. F. Hochstetter, for general information.

E. W. STAFFORD.

REPORT
Of a Geological Exploration of the Coal-field in the Drury and Hunua District, in the Province of Auckland (N. Z.)

By Dr. FERDINAND HOCHSTETTER,
Member of the I. R. Geological Institution of the Austrian Empire,—and Geologist on board the Austrian frigate, "Novara."

Having been requested by the Government of New Zealand to examine and report upon the Coal-field recently discovered in the neighbourhood of Auckland,—and having received the sanction of Commodore Baron de Wüllerstorf-Urbair, of the Austrian Frigate "Novara," for this purpose; I have the honor to report as follows:—

After having spent the 24th and 25th of December last in making an investigation of the Geological structure of the country in the immediate neighbourhood of Auckland, between the isthmus of Whau on the west,—I started on the 28th of December in company with the Rev. A. G. Purchas, Mr. C. Heaphy, Provincial Surveyor, Mr. Drummond Hay, and several other gentlemen, together with some of my colleagues, for the Drury and Hunua District, to examine, as closely as my time permitted, the Coal, which had recently been discovered there by the Rev. A. G. Purchas, and has since been opened in several places by various settlers.

Our head quarters were at Mr. Young’s Hotel, at Drury, from the top of which the Austrian Flag floated as a pleasant token of welcome. Our reception was most gratifying; nearly all the settlers in the neighbourhood were assembled, showing the great interest that was felt in our mission. I would here state that it was mainly owing to the excellent arrangements made by the Government, to the energy and perseverance of the accompanying gentlemen, and to the useful information afforded by some of the settlers, that I have been enabled, in the very short time at my disposal, to visit and examine the most important points of the portion of the Coal-field brought under my notice,—and likewise to pay a hasty visit to the Waikato River between Mangatawhiri and Tuakau. I have thus obtained a general view of the geological formation of that part of the country; and have arrived at results, which I trust will in some measure answer the expectations of the Government, and prove of value to the people of Auckland by leading to the development of so important a source of national wealth. I shall confine myself at present to matters having a practical bearing, reserving my report on the strictly scientific portion of the subject until my return to Vienna, in order to afford time and opportunity for a careful examination of the fossils, and an analysis of the various minerals and rocks, of which I have collected specimens.

The Plains of Papakura and Drury on the eastern shore of the Manukau Harbour are of an undulating character, and but slightly elevated above the sea. They are bounded on the south-east and south by a thickly wooded range of hills of moderate elevation, perhaps from 1000 to 1500 feet in height.

The general direction of this range is from south-west to north-east, from the Waikato to the Wairoa; except a portion near Drury, which runs nearly north and south, and rises almost immediately from the plain. On the slope of that portion, in more or less deep gullies, seams of Coal are exposed, in some places by the natural action of the water, and in others by the exertions of the settlers.

1. The first, and the southernmost, place we visited was on Mr. Farmer’s land near Drury, on the right bank of a small stream in a gully just inside the forest, where a shaft about 20 feet deep has been opened by Mr. Turnbull, exposing three seams of coal, separated by thin layers of shale, and amounting altogether to about 15 feet in thickness. A considerable quantity has been raised from this shaft; but, on account of the water it contained at the time of my visit, I could not examine as accurately as I should have wished the section and character of the seam. The dip here is 10° towards south-west. The roof is a soft argillaceous sandstone which passes above into bituminous shale, containing vegetable impressions. The bottom was not exposed, but large basaltic boulders, filling up the bed of the creek and lying on the brow of the hill at the edge of the forest, seem to belong to a basaltic conglomerate below the coal.

2. Some openings at Mr. Hall’s and Mr. Pollock’s farms.

(a.) A small hole near Mr. Hall’s house just at the foot of the range exhibits a decomposed basaltic conglomerate, large boulders of which...